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 Millikin's traditional ceremony for students will be on Sunday,
May 17, at 2 p.m. at the Decatur Civic Center. Millikin will host a
ceremony for graduates of its Professional Adult Comprehensive
Education (PACE) program and Master of Business Administration (MBA)
program on Saturday, May 16, at 7 p.m. in Kirkland Fine Arts Center.
Tickets are required for admission to both ceremonies.
The ceremony on May 17 will mark the graduation of approximately 350
students. Kenneth L. Smithmier, president and chief executive
officer of Illinois Health and Science (IHS), will serve as the 2015
Commencement speaker on May 17. The ceremony will also include
remarks by student Terrence L. Hodge of Chicago, Ill., who will be
graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Theatre. Hodge was
selected by his fellow classmates to address the graduating class.
Ken Smithmier has been with Illinois Health and Science since 1993.
IHS is the parent corporation of a number of companies including
Decatur Memorial Hospital (DMH). Located in Decatur, Ill., Decatur
Memorial Hospital is a 300 bed, not-for-profit, community hospital
that has been providing medical care since 1916 for the residents of
central Illinois. Today, DMH has nearly 2,300 dedicated employees
and 300 physicians. DMH encompasses 11 state-of-the-art centers of
excellence. DMH has been recognized four consecutive years as a 50
Top Cardiovascular Hospital from Truven Health Analytics.
Smithmier has spent his entire life in healthcare starting as an
18-year-old Navy corpsman. After the service, he was a 1978 graduate
of the St. Louis University Physician Assistant program and worked
as a physician assistant for five years. He subsequently graduated
from the University of Minnesota with a master's degree in hospital
administration.
Prior to joining IHS, Smithmier held a variety of executive
positions in hospitals, from small rural facilities to major
teaching hospital positions at BJC Healthcare in St. Louis, Mo.
Smithmier has extensive experience throughout the healthcare
industry. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Illinois
Hospital Association from 1998 to 2004 and served as chairman in
2003. He is a past member of the American Hospital Association's
(AHA) Regional Policy Board and has served on many AHA committees
and task forces.
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The ceremony on May 16 will celebrate the graduation of students earning their
bachelor's degree from Millikin in one of five academic programs offered in
PACE, the accelerated evening bachelor's degree program for adults, and students
receiving their Master of Business Administration from Millikin. The speaker for
the ceremony will be Sharon T. Alpi, director of the Center for Entrepreneurship
at Millikin University.
The ceremony will also include speeches by PACE student Natasha Huffman of
Decatur, Ill., and Denise Smith of Sullivan, Ill., who will be receiving her
Master of Business Administration. Huffman is graduating with a Bachelor of
Science in Organizational Leadership, and currently works at Jim's Auto Sales
where she manages the family business. Denise Smith received her Bachelor of
Arts in Sociology from Eastern Illinois University. She currently serves as
director of People Services at St. Mary's Hospital in Decatur, Ill. Both
students were selected by fellow classmates to address the graduating class.
Sharon Alpi is a 25-year member of Millikin University's Tabor School of
Business and founded the Center for Entrepreneurship in 1998. Alpi was the
recipient of Millikin's Teaching Excellence and Campus Leadership Award, and
received the Governor of Illinois’ Small Business Advocate of the Year Award in
2001. In 2004, she was named a Coleman Foundation Professor in Entrepreneurship,
joining 11 other named professors from around the country.
For more information on Millikin University's 2015 Spring Commencement, please
visit millikin.edu/commencement.
[Media Relations, Millikin
University]
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